Background
"Established in 1871 by Congress through the creation of a U.S. Commissioner
of Fish and Fisheries, the National Fish Hatchery System's (NFHS) original purpose
was to provide additional domestic food fish to replace declining native
fish. Cultured fish were used to replace fish that were lost from natural (drought,
flood, habitat destruction) or human (over-harvest, pollution, habitat loss
due to development and dam construction) influences, to establish fish populations
to meet specific management needs, and to provide for the creation of new
and expanded recreational fisheries opportunities." (NFHS Web Site)

Since
those times our country has undergone vast projects for controlling floodwaters
and generating hydroelectric energy with dams. Agencies like the Tennessee
Valley Authority and the Army Corps of Engineers (COE) have constructed dams
that have disrupted fish populations across the entire country. These dams have
made it almost impossible for natural fish populations to survive on their own.
As a result, a primary roll of the NFHS has become mitigation of the effects
of those projects.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) administers
the NFHS and has been trying to determine who is responsible for funding
mitigation activities since Congress never made it completely clear. Currently
the FWS believes the COE and other agencies like the TVA are responsible for funding
mitigation activities since they are responsible for the projects that require
mitigation.

Instead of waiting for reimbursable agreements to
be fully in place, the FWS proposes to reduce the NFHS's 2012 budget by $6.28 million,
the estimated cost to provide mitigation This budget reduction, without
a full reimbursement guarantee from agencies like the COE or TVA, may ultimately
require the "Shuttering" of at least 9 National Fisheries. Six of those nine
are located in the Southeast. They include Chattahoochee Forest National Fish
Hatchery in GA as well as hatcheries in TN, AR and KY.The Hatchery

Our TU Chapter has worked extensively with the Chattahoochee Forest Hatchery
since the Chapter was formed. Therefore, this description will deal primarily
with that hatchery. However, the National Fish Hatchery System is a network
of facilities that support each other. When one hatchery has a problem, the
other hatcheries make adjustments to overcome the problem. The possibility of
9 hatcheries closing is mind-boggling.

In a recent economic study (Caudill
and Charbonneau, 2010) many of the benefits of maintaining the hatchery
were measured. Each year the Chattahoochee Forest Hatchery provides 324,000 stockable
size fish into Georgia lakes and streams. Another 460,000 smaller fish are
supplied to Georgia Department of Natural Resources hatcheries. "Recreational
angling for fish produced by the hatchery results in considerable expenditures
of recreation-related goods and services such as lodging, transportation, boats,
fishing equipment and other gear used by the fishing public."

Since
the entire country is suffering from the current, "Great Depression" the economic
effect of closing the hatchery would overtly affect the rural areas is serves.

Fish
production at the Hatchery provides employment for more
than 317 people with over $8.2 million in wage and salary income.

Retail
sales associated with angler expenditures as a result of stocking by the hatchery
amounts to over $15 million/year. More than $4 million of that was for
food, lodging and transportation.

The total economic output of the hatchery
was $28.8 Million. Every dollar spent on the hatchery returned $37.20 to
our communities.

Keeping the Hatchery operating is just good business.

In
addition to good business, another benefit of stocking by the
hatchery has been brought to my attention. When fishing the local rivers and
streams, we often witness local families fishing. Not only is it an activity that
keeps families together, as a direct result of stocking these "Put and Take"
fisheries, many families are able to put dinner on the table! Contact the Director and Asst. Director of the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service and let
them know how important it is to adequately fund the hatcheries. (Click Here)

January 2014 - The Struggle Continues

Thanks to everyone's hard work our voices were heard, Congress passed and the
President signed the Fiscal Year 2012 Appropriation Bill, fully funding the
Mitigation Hatcheries.

The struggle for funding for the Hatcheries continues, however. Those in charge continue to propose closing Mitigation Hatcheries and
cutting the funding necessary to mitigate the effects of Federal water development
projects.

Rick Nehrling was a National Fish Hatchery Service (NFHS)
employee for 38 years and retired in 2008. His knowledge and insight offer
those of us unfamiliar with the working of government agencies an opportunity to
see what is really going on at the National Fish Hatcheries.

Listed
below are Rick's Letters to "The Directorate" of the NFHS. These letters include
links to documents relevant to our goal of keeping the hatcheries open and
adequately funded.